About Chantal

Chantal is a government law specialist with more than 10 years' experience providing specialist legal advice to the Commonwealth, State and local government. Her experience ranges from major procurement and tendering projects to advising on administrative law matters. She understands the pressures that government departments face from her recent in-house experience as the Deputy General Counsel of the NSW Police Force.

In 2011, Chantal was recognised by the Law Society of New South Wales as an Accredited Specialist in Government and Administrative Law.

Chantal has broad ranging experience in meeting the legal needs of government and advises on commercial law matters (contracting, procurement and probity), administrative law including both merits review and judicial review, and statutory interpretation matters. She also advises on litigation, including solicitor advocacy, particularly in the NSW Civil and Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Who she works with

Chantal works with Commonwealth and State Government entities.

Work done recently

Qualifications

Chantal holds a Bachelor of Arts/Law from Macquarie University, a Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from the College of Law and a Masters of Law (Commercial) from the University of Sydney.

She became an Accredited Specialist in Government and Administrative Law in 2011 and is a member of the NSW Law Society's Government and Administrative Law Committee. Chantal is also a member of the NSW Law Society's Specialist Accreditation Board.

Life before Sparkes

Prior to rejoining Sparke Helmore in January 2016, Chantal was the Deputy General Counsel and Manager for the NSW Police Force's Commercial Law Unit from 2012 to 2016. In this role she provided commercial law advice to the NSW Police Force and worked with the General Counsel to provide strategic legal advice to the organisation on a range of high-profile issues including, most recently, the Martin Place siege.

Chantal previously worked in Sparke Helmore's Government Group from 2005 to 2012 and started her career as a Legal Officer on the Special Commission of Inquiry into the Waterfall Rail Accident.

Life outside of Sparkes

Chantal doesn't sit still for long and fills up her free time exercising and travelling to new places. She managed to combine these two passions in her recent trip to Norway, where she hiked the Besseggen Ridge, and India, where she studied Ashtanga yoga.